The Connective Lens

Photo of the Now, vol. 222

Sunday morning saw the swimming, biking and running of the Iron Goddess Triathlon at Waterloo Recreation Area.  For two very good reasons, I was there as a photographer rather than as a participant:

1. I never learned how to swim, I can’t ride a bike, and — trust me — it’s in everyone’s best interest for me not to try to run unless I’m running from some sort of life-threatening situation.  If you’re not convinced, consider this (hilariously accurate) search string somebody used to find my website: “handicapped photographer chelsea mi”.
2. As the event’s name suggests, the Iron Goddess Triathlon is only for women.

Since I couldn’t take part in the intentional exhaustion, I began work on the modern photographer’s triathlon — shoot/process/blog — while the women worked on the traditional swim/bike/run triathlon.

The day started with a nice refreshing swim in Portage Lake.

One racer was particularly happy to have finished the swim.

The next step was a bike ride.

The race concluded with a run.

Near the end of the course, organizers wrote encouraging and informative messages on the pavement.

There were plenty of family members to cheer on the racers.  Since cute sells newspapers, I kept my eye out for kids cheering on their moms.  These girls — two sets of two sisters — had a good time cheering on their moms.

This young man shared a high five with his dad.

This young man even brought a handmade sign with a pithy message: “Yay mom”.

After all that effort, racers were glad to cross the finish line.  Some were too weary to exult in the accomplishment, but that wasn’t a problem for this racer, the overall third-place finisher in her race.